Former United States Postal Service mailman Jason McIntyre is out of a job thanks to his felony conviction for dumping 576 pieces of undelivered mail in a shopping center trash bin.
A Portland, Maine, judge sentenced 41-year-old McIntyre to a year of probation Tuesday after he pleaded guilty to dumping mail over four days in November 2013 instead of delivering it to 115 homes on his route in Saco, Maine, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Portland, Maine.
A maintenance man found the discarded mail at the Saco Valley Shopping Center.
McIntyre’s sentence could have been much tougher. Destroying mail, a felony offense, is punishable by up to five years behind bars.
“When confronted, McIntyre admitted to throwing out the mail to avoid having to bring it back to the Annex and face management,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. “In pronouncing sentence, Judge [Nancy] Torresen observed that McIntyre made a poor decision that caused a lot of inconvenience and could have been worse being that the mail sometimes contains irreplaceable items.”
Postal Service carriers earn an average of $51,790, plus benefits, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The Postal Service’s unofficial motto is, “Neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night, stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.”
Here are five other times this year postal workers were convicted for destroying or stealing mail.
1. This man stole mail to support his drug habit
A former Dumas, Texas, postal employee stole more than 300 pieces of mail to support his marijuana habit.
U.S. District Judge Mary Lou Robinson sentenced 21-year-old Manuel Angel Holguin in March to 12 months behind bars for theft of mail, court documents show. The judge also ordered him to pay more than $1,400 in restitution.
Holguin told investigators he targeted greeting cards to steal cash and gift cards to buy drugs.
2. This worker stashed 20,000 pieces of mail
A former postal worker in Warrensburg, Missouri, pleaded guilty in June to stealing thousands of pieces of mail.
David Thompson stole an estimated 20,000 pieces of mail addressed to more than 5,000 recipients from May 2012 to January 2014, according to the Department of Justice.
Thompson’s supervisors suspected in late 2013 that he was drinking alcohol while driving to deliver the mail. USPS officials installed a camera in Thompson’s vehicle, and found he was transporting some mail back home.
Thompson faces up to five years in federal prison and $250,000 in fines.
3. This carrier stole money from greeting cards
Terrence Young, a 37-year-old Ohio mail carrier, pleaded guilty in June to the delay or destruction of mail after he stole coupons and gift cards, and failed to deliver time-sensitive documents.
Young stole Kroger coupons, a Kroger gift card, and a Walmart gift card, according to the Department of Justice and USPS Office of Inspector General.
Residents complained they weren’t receiving important documents like utility bills and pension checks, prompting an investigation.
“Several customers advised that due to the non-receipt of their mail, they had utilities shut off, lost insurance, missed appointments and court dates, lost out on benefits for their children and were in the process of being evicted from their home without ever receiving notification through the mail,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Vipal Patel said.
USPS fired Young, who faces at least one year of probation and up to 10 months behind bars.
4. Another man threw mail in a church dumpster
Two former mail carriers in central Virginia pleaded guilty to misdemeanor obstruction of mail in federal court on the same day May after they each dumped more than 1,000 pieces of mail.
Ashley Gokey, 39, and Eric Marshall, 23, both received six months probation and are barred from applying for a USPS job again, court documents show.
Gokey threw her letters in an apartment complex trash bin in Henrico County, and Marshall threw his letters in a church trash bin in Chesterfield County.
5. This woman chucked letters from service members
A federal judge sentenced a former postal worker in Norfolk, Virginia, to five years probation earlier this year after a resident found two trash bags containing hundreds of pieces of mail in an overgrown lot.
A Norfolk grand jury indicted 31-year-old Shalita Corley in March, and she pleaded guilty in April.
The resident watched Corley dump the mail, retrieved it, and delivered it to a local USPS station.
USPS Office of Inspector General agents searched the site and found 2,588 pieces of mail, including letters from members in the armed services, according to court documents.
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